From Cricinfo
Bangladesh have named a 15-man A squad for their tour of Zimbabwe which starts next month. Tushar Imran leads the party with Mushfiqur Rahim as his vice-captain.
The tour runs from June 12 to July 10 and the squad includes Nafees Iqbal, who scored a memorable 141 against Australia (!!??) on their recent tour. Internationals Tapash Baisya, Hasibul Hossain, Enamul Haque and Alok Kapali also make the trip.
Rahim was the captain of Bangladesh at the Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka and was recalled for one Test against Sri Lanka before again being left out.
Squad Tushar Imran (capt), Mushfiqur Rahim, Alok Kapali, Nafees Iqbal Khan, Nazmus Sadat, Mehrab Hossain, Shakib Al Hasan, Forhad Reza, Abdur Razzak Raj, Enamul Haque, Mahmud Ullah Riad, Tapash Baishya, Hasibul Hossain, Shafaq Al Jabir, Mahbubul Alam.

I am really impressed with the team combination. I feel its almost equally strong as the national team, the only difference is lack of experience. Good luck for the tour.

Mahmood

May 24, 2006, 12:29 PM

No disrespect, but why does Shanto keeps coming back to the national teams? This is like a nightmare that just wont go away!

sadi

May 24, 2006, 12:32 PM

I think he deserves a trip back to the A team... not the national team but the A team... why? He was the highest wicket taker in NCL last year... had few consecutive 5 wkt game... We have to reward our domestic cricket someway or another... some people gets better with age... I just hope thats the case with shanto...

rudro

May 24, 2006, 12:33 PM

No disrespect, but why does Shanto keeps coming back to the national teams? This is like a nightmare that just wont go away!
Shanto's success in the domestic leauge, for sure. How old is he now?

rudro

May 24, 2006, 12:35 PM

... We have to reward our domestic cricket someway or another...
Except in the case of Al-Shahriar...lol.

Mahmood

May 24, 2006, 01:11 PM

The BCB XI can have veterans, but the A team should only consist of those proving themselves for the National team call up.

babubangla

May 24, 2006, 01:20 PM

If Shanto, why not Rokon? :confused:

sensible

May 24, 2006, 01:43 PM

A team should include those who has a future in the national team. Do you think Shanto has a future in our national team? If not, then we should have included somebody else who does. That other person can gain some experience and would not try to "gain experience" as a part of the national team.

sadi

May 24, 2006, 01:43 PM

One reason maybe is that we have many good alternatives for the A team batsmenwise... look at the lineup... nazmus sadat, sakib, mehrab, tushar or even alok.... bowlingwise specially pace bowling we don't have much alternatives.... shafaq and forhad reza are quite impressive but other than that, i dun see much depth... about tapash and nazmul, no comments

Fazal

May 24, 2006, 01:44 PM

If Shanto, why not Rokon? :confused:

Old DOHS connection?

TheWatcher

May 24, 2006, 01:52 PM

Hehe, this is almost the same team I proposed (http://www.banglacricket.com/alochona/showthread.php?p=307777#post307777) , thanks Faruk for following my suggestions so closely :D

Wait a minute.... Faruk, you naughty boy, you left out Ehsanul and Talha again :mad:

babubangla

May 24, 2006, 01:53 PM

Old DOHS connection?

Cricinfo says Shanto is Just 28+.
Is that right?
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/player/55909.html

I am 12.
How old are you Fazal?

Fazal

May 24, 2006, 01:58 PM

Cricinfo says Shanto is Just 28+.
Is that right?
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/player/55909.html

I am 12.
How old are you Fazal?

My momy boley Bio ke tao... ami boli ...:D

TheWatcher

May 24, 2006, 02:00 PM

What's the big deal about Rokon? He has not crossed even 40+ plus average with bat in any domestic league. I believe, with experience, younger bats our selectors have chosen will be lot more consistent than he is.

TheWatcher

May 24, 2006, 03:32 PM

Shanta has bowled 300+ overs in NCl this year, only Yasin Arafat (an offspinner) has bowled more overs than him. Yet, Shanta has maintained a good economy rate (2.95), strike rate (32.4), and average (16.00), besides being the highest wicket taker (57 wickets) in the league. May be we can use him as a workhorse in Test matches if we need one.

Robin is recorded bowling at 82 mph. He is also known as a hard hitting late order batsman in Dhaka league. He has already played couple of matches for the A-team, against visiting UAE team earlier this year, with moderate success. But, with his very ordinary stats in NCL (http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/56032.html), I had not expected him to be selected for a full A-team tour.

Anyway, hope to see him doing well on fast Zimbabwean pitches.

al Furqaan

May 24, 2006, 08:28 PM

first off...didn't our a team just play zim a few months ago?

to be honest, despite his great stats, shanto shouldn't be on the squad even tho statistically he deserves it. just like its been said, does he really have a prospect on the team? i think not.

is enam jr in the team or is it enamul haque moni? can't be the latter, but cricinfo has now stopped calling enam, jr. also they made a mistake. they said nafees iqbal scored 141 against australia.

decent team...i hope they hit the zims hard where it hurts.

RazabQ

May 25, 2006, 12:33 AM

Don't look now - but this could be the BD Nats in 2-3 year's time when Bashar and Rafique retires, Ash gets pushed out due to his inconsistencies (talent notwithstanding), and Masree suffers one injury too many.

RazabQ

May 25, 2006, 12:34 AM

Interesting that Tushar gets made captain. If NI is going, he might as well have been made skipper. Thought he did a'ight during the UK tour.

bapzmania

May 25, 2006, 01:59 AM

I think Musfiq will give problem to the selectors dis time cuz im damn sure he will make some score n datz y Pilot hav to end.why not selctors give him a chance in ODI cuz hez much betta batsman dan Pilot.
Musfiq best of luck. Alldough our age is same.But im watchin you since you r 13...lolz

HawkEye000

May 25, 2006, 04:29 AM

Interesting that Tushar gets made captain. If NI is going, he might as well have been made skipper. Thought he did a'ight during the UK tour.
I think the probe committee that was formed to investigate Bangladesh U-19 team’s failure in the U-19 WC 2002 in New Zealand advised the BCB not to appoint NI as the captain of any Bangladesh team. He had a bad disciplinary record and there was also a case of the all the U-19 players revolting against him. He has never been appointed to lead any Bangladesh from thereafter. Shahriar Nafees was the captain of the Bangladesh-A team that toured England last year.

HawkEye000

May 25, 2006, 04:31 AM

Don't look now - but this could be the BD Nats in 2-3 year's time when Bashar and Rafique retires, Ash gets pushed out due to his inconsistencies (talent notwithstanding), and Masree suffers one injury too many.
and what will be the fate of Shahadat, Shahriar Nafees, Aftab and others like them ;) ...

TheWatcher

May 25, 2006, 04:58 AM

I think the probe committee that was formed to investigate Bangladesh U-19 team’s failure in the U-19 WC 2002 in New Zealand advised the BCB not to appoint NI as the captain of any Bangladesh team. He had a bad disciplinary record and there was also a case of the all the U-19 players revolting against him. He has never been appointed to lead any Bangladesh from thereafter. Shahriar Nafees was the captain of the Bangladesh-A team that toured England last year.
As far I remember, NI led BD U/19 in the Asian U/19 cup in 2003. But right before the U/19 WC 2004, it was McInnes who decided that Ashiqur Rahman was a better fit for the leading role, I am not sure if NI's history in NZ had anything to do with that decision. Also, NI was the BCCB appointed captain for Chittagong division at the beginning of NCL 2005-06.

However, yes, it was SN who led BD-A team in England last year, not NI.

Miraz

May 25, 2006, 05:06 AM

I have heard about the icident in NZ through media. It is true that NI encountered revolt and division within the U-19 team and a probe committee suggested BCCB not appoint him captain again in near future.

sar2005

May 25, 2006, 06:49 AM

Shanto deserves a chance and so does Rokon. Anyway, the team looks very promising. Let's hope for a classy performance now. Does anyone know the schedule? At least, how many matches BD A is going to play??

Rubu

May 25, 2006, 07:02 AM

Great Team! Now, can we make everyone of the team who is 20+ age to stay in Zim forever? That can be the best thing happen to bd cricket.

cricman

May 25, 2006, 09:32 PM

Plans are afoot also to bring the Bangladesh A side for a month to play in Zimbabwe’s provincial competition.

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/viewinfo.cfm?linkid=13&id=3279&siteid=1 BCB should steal this Idea of hosting a Cricket Champions League from ZC since supposeldy they don't have any money

TheWatcher

May 25, 2006, 09:51 PM

Plans are afoot also to bring the Bangladesh A side for a month to play in Zimbabwe’s provincial competition.
Playing Zimbabwean national team or the A-team is one thing and playing in Zimbabwean domestic cricket is another thing. I will advise BCCB to leave ZC to take care of their own house by themselves.

RazabQ

May 26, 2006, 12:16 AM

OOh sorry guys I mixed up NI with SN. It makes sense now.

Andy-Flower

May 26, 2006, 02:43 AM

From Cricinfo
I am really impressed with the team combination. I feel its almost equally strong as the national team, the only difference is lack of experience. Good luck for the tour.

Bangladash A is most likely to win all the matches comfortably cuz at the moment there is no domestic league to talk about only select sides are playing. It will be interesting to see what sort of a team Zim will field most likely under 19 players(Samunderu, Gary Balance) are going to play...maybe they will mix those with a couple of national team players who are not going to the U.K. I dont know it will be interesting

Ahmed_B

May 26, 2006, 02:47 AM

Originally Posted by Miraz
From Cricinfo
the squad includes Nafees Iqbal, who scored a memorable 141 against Australia (!!??) on their recent tour.
When did this happen??
Hmm... yes I had the same question. I guess they mixed up Shahriar nafees & Nafees Iqbal.

fwullah

May 26, 2006, 04:13 AM

and what will be the fate of Shahadat, Shahriar Nafees, Aftab and others like them ;) ...

I think the fate of Shahadat will be the same as Mashrafee. There is also the chance for Shahadat to follow the path of Shanto, you never know.

I am not sure what fate Shahriar Nafees will have. His technique is not good enough for a left-hander, so if he goes out of form after a couple of debut seasons, we could all throw him out from our favorite's list.

I thought that both Aftab and Ashraful are both passing rough times in their career right now. They will either survive this and be much better players, or be goners for good.

cricman

May 28, 2006, 11:40 AM

The rumor is for Bangladesh A to participate in the FC tournement vs the Asian Club teams and Zimbabawe Club teams so really wouldn't be such a bad idea for BCB to accept the offer.

Miraz

June 3, 2006, 10:40 AM

Zimbabwe declared a very inexperienced A team for the tour. Only notable player is Hamilton Masakadza. Bangladesh A should thrash them in both first class matches and one dayers.

From Cricinfo,

Zimbabwe's selectors have named a very inexperienced squad for the forthcoming A-team series at home to Bangladesh.
Although the side will be led by Hamilton Masakadza, a veteran of 15 Tests and 21 ODIs, few others chosen have more than a handful of first-class or one-day appearances under their belts, and some have never played top-flight cricket at all.
The selectors were in a difficult position as there has been no meaningful first-class cricket inside the country since the 2004-05 season, and their judgment has had to be based on what has happened during the seriously disrupted club season.
Bangladesh A will play three four-day games and six one-dayers during their five week stay, and their tour will be followed almost immediately by a full one-day series between the two countries.
Zimbabwe A squad Hamilton Masakadza (capt), Bothwell Chapungu, Patient Charumbira, Robertson Chinyengetere, Tendai Chisoro, Graeme Cremer, Tinashe Hove, Tinotenda Mawoyo, Bernard Mlambo, Tafadzwa Mufambisi, Khaulani Ntuli, Remembrance Nyathi, Kudakwashe Samunderu, Bradley Staddon, Adam Tom.

sar2005

June 3, 2006, 04:13 PM

Is there any schedule available yet for A team's tour? When it's going to start? Is there any chance of live scorecard?

rudro

June 5, 2006, 10:39 AM

Zimbabwe declared a very inexperienced A team for the tour. Only notable player is Hamilton Masakadza. Bangladesh A should thrash them in both first class matches and one dayers.

I would send our U-17 team led by Golam Rahman there and they should be able beat this ZIM team up by a considerable margin.

My friend I think we need to learn how to play one day cricket! I am saying this becos against Australia we showed how frazile our batting order is. We need to play more matches against the top teams so that we can improve our condition.

Its true Zim are weak side but never neglect them! We need to play our best cricket to whitewash them and I believe we are able to do that.

rudro

June 7, 2006, 09:39 AM

Ooooo! Sizzler of a comment. Reminds me of fans from a neighboring country.
Sorry friend, I couldn't agree with your comment. Best vs. Best - That's what I ask for. ZIM's best team will face our best team in ODI series. No complain. But our A team is not facing the best ZIM A team. Only two players from their national team that visited WI (http://usa.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/2006/ZIM_IN_WI/SQUADS/ZIM_IN_WI_APR-MAY2006_ZIM-SQUAD.html) has been included in this side as opposed to eight inour side.

That's why I demanded we weaken our A side to give some exposure to some age-group cricketers. No big-brother/boss attitude meant. I don't think we have achieved enough to distance ourselves from ZIM.

betterdaz

June 9, 2006, 06:25 AM

Sorry friend, I couldn't agree with your comment. Best vs. Best - That's what I ask for. ZIM's best team will face our best team in ODI series. No complain. But our A team is not facing the best ZIM A team. Only two players from their national team that visited WI (http://usa.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/2006/ZIM_IN_WI/SQUADS/ZIM_IN_WI_APR-MAY2006_ZIM-SQUAD.html) has been included in this side as opposed to eight inour side.

That's why I demanded we weaken our A side to give some exposure to some age-group cricketers. No big-brother/boss attitude meant. I don't think we have achieved enough to distance ourselves from ZIM.

well, although they may not be the best zim A side - i'm a zimbo and i only know three names on that list - they are chosen from players who performed best in the domestic season.

i am surprised not more players form the WI tour were included - and as they haven't been i've lost my appetite for the series. which i was actually looking forward to:

taylor,rinke,sibanda,matsikenyeri,utseya,mupariwa, mahwire,chibhabha, ireland,dabengwa,higgins...they could and should ALL play. they were showing signs of development now suddenly they have to sit, watch and wait till BD national side arrive...seriously:confused:

Sam

June 11, 2006, 05:50 AM

Anyway, where can we can get the scorecards? CI is not going to cover this series, neither cricbuzz. Is Tigercricket.com going to cover it? Any Zim on-line newspaper or fans site? Can anybody help?
I think betterdaz, being a Zimbo can help us.

TheWatcher

June 11, 2006, 04:29 PM

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) made two changes in the last moment as vice-captain and wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim and paceman Shafaq Al Jabir announced their unavailability because of their HSC examinations.

Sahagir Hossain and Mohammad Sharif will replace them.

-DS

TheWatcher

June 11, 2006, 06:08 PM

A row has broken out inside Zimbabwe Cricket after the announcement of the Zimbabwe A side to take on Bangladesh later this month. The argument is said to be between a top unnamed ZC official and Bruce Makovah, the controversial convener of selectors, over the composition of the team.

ZC last week named a heavily-depleted A-team squad which included mostly players who have not played first-class cricket. The side was chosen mainly from the weakened ZC National League which ran this year after a number of top clubs withdrew. They ignored players from the splinter local league, which was formed by the rebel clubs which broke away from ZC over administrative differences. This was despite insistence by ZC that players playing outside its own structures would be considered.

Anyway, where can we can get the scorecards? CI is not going to cover this series, neither cricbuzz. Is Tigercricket.com going to cover it? Any Zim on-line newspaper or fans site? Can anybody help?
I think betterdaz, being a Zimbo can help us.
There are no Zimbabwe newspapers interested - the recent West Indies series got minimal coverage and was not on TV in Zimbabwe - and the grounds they are using make it almost impossible for there to be ball-by-ball coverage even if we wanted it. Cricinfo will have scorecards for the matches, assuming that the Zimbabwe board are willing to supply accurate ones.

MartinW

June 12, 2006, 07:16 AM

well, although they may not be the best zim A side - i'm a zimbo and i only know three names on that list - they are chosen from players who performed best in the domestic season. i am surprised not more players form the WI tour were included - and as they haven't been i've lost my appetite for the series. which i was actually looking forward to: taylor,rinke,sibanda,matsikenyeri,utseya,mupariwa, mahwire,chibhabha, ireland,dabengwa,higgins...they could and should ALL play. they were showing signs of development now suddenly they have to sit, watch and wait till BD national side arrive...seriously:confused:

The bulk of the players who took part in the West Indies series are in England playing club cricket and it's not financially viable to bring them back. They will return for the full tour. As for the selections, these are supposedly the best in Zimbabwe's domestic game, but the season has been a virtual farce and many players/clubs have boycotted the tournaments. What the selectors have chosen represents an untried group of youngsters.

Miraz

June 12, 2006, 07:33 AM

MartinW, can you clarify the rule "match between two full countries must be televised". If Zim-Ban tour is not going to be televised how umpires can make TV replay deciosns??

What about the use of third umpire??

Confused!!

SMHasan

June 12, 2006, 10:30 AM

There are no Zimbabwe newspapers interested - the recent West Indies series got minimal coverage and was not on TV in Zimbabwe - and the grounds they are using make it almost impossible for there to be ball-by-ball coverage even if we wanted it. Cricinfo will have scorecards for the matches, assuming that the Zimbabwe board are willing to supply accurate ones.

MartinW, What type of grounds they are going to use? Are not these international standard? If not then why ICC is allowing them to organise the matches in those below standard grounds? Its true that quality players have left Zim but it does not mean that quality grounds have moved with them!

MartinW

June 12, 2006, 04:16 PM

MartinW, What type of grounds they are going to use? Are not these international standard? If not then why ICC is allowing them to organise the matches in those below standard grounds? Its true that quality players have left Zim but it does not mean that quality grounds have moved with them!

The grounds will be decent enough, but even the major venues are struggling. At Bulawayo, for example, the long-standing groundsman has just quit and left the country, and I am told by a senior administrator that as things stand, none of the grounds in Matabeleland (which includes all of Bulawayo) are fit.

As with all inside Zimbabwe, the grounds are suffering from a lack of expertise and cash. Kenya played in Zim in Feb/Mar and were surprised at the quality of the grounds. The abysmally low scores in the domestic matches also highlights the issues, plus southern Africa has been plagued by one of the wettest summers in decades.

MartinW

June 12, 2006, 04:25 PM

MartinW, can you clarify the rule "match between two full countries must be televised". If Zim-Ban tour is not going to be televised how umpires can make TV replay deciosns??

What about the use of third umpire??

Confused!!

The rules state their must be TV coverage but my view is that the games will go ahead regardless of that. We are trying to get clarification.

TheWatcher

June 14, 2006, 04:18 AM

The debate over the selection of the Zimbabwe A side to play Bangladesh rumbles on with reports of rows within Zimbabwe Cricket over some of those named. The squad is made up of mostly inexperienced players from the substandard National League.

"Anyone can score run in that league," said a leading cricket personality in Zimbabwe. "It can't be used as basis for selection into international cricket."

He cited the inclusion of Bradley Staddon, the son of ZC interim committee member Stan Staddon, as an example of the issues. The younger Staddon has not played in Zimbabwe for a lengthy spell, and many are far from happy at his selection when there appears to be little to justify it. Some sources within Zimbabwe cricket have also claimed that the team's racial composition was deliberately unrepresentative of the pool of players in the country.

Andy Pycroft, who is coaching the side, was said by sources to have flagged his disapproval with selectors over the make-up of the team.

Check out the following report by CI on June 16, 2006:
Makovah defends under-fire selections
Bruce Makovah, the Zimbabwe cricket national selectors convener, has dismissed critcism leveled at the squad picked for the A-team series against Bangladesh A which starts on Saturday.
Several choices have been attacked by critics, and the presence of players with no top-flight experience has also come under the spotlight. Makovah and his co-selectors opted not to pick anyone from the breakaway leagues which contain a number of leading clubs who have ceded from those organised by Zimbabwe Cricket.
"ZC is not running separately," Makovah told Zimbabwe's Independent. "People cannot just walk in and walk out as they wish. These players were encouraged to play the official league. So those who were prepared to rebel we did not look at them. Besides I did not see any statistics from their league. I only got to know that they were playing through hearsay."
"If we look at the squad that was selected, the players came from various provinces. Also if you look at the statistics Mashonaland came last in the league. It automatically shows that the other provinces have a pool of players as well."
One critic pointed out to Cricinfo that Mashonaland had finished last because almost all their leading players had defected to the breakaway organisation.
"Basically this is a first major step to give other people an opportunity and widen the player base in the country," Makovah added. "Our cricket has been based on recycling players, and this affected us the last time when players decided to rebel. We found ourselves in a crisis because we had no broad player base."
But one former Test player said that the standard in the official leagues was dire. "Two years ago none of them were even in a first league side - they were playing third division cricket," he said. "The cricketers averaging 60+ in the national league this year were not getting to double figures a year ago in the top league. Anyone that understands cricket is not going to believe that there has been improvement or that the game is growing."

Miraz

June 23, 2006, 11:48 AM

Zimbabwe Coach Andy Pycroft is very much concerned about handling Enamul Jr. Nice to see Enamul Jr. is becoming a match winner in his early ages.

Quote from Cricinfo article

"He admitted that unless his batsmen found a way of coping with Enamul Haque Jnr, who took 9 for 112 in the first match, then Zimbabwe would again struggle. "He bowls a lot of overs and wears out the batsmen. Our guys are not used to facing left-arm spin for long spells and he took advantage. We are working on how to counter him. The guys will get better and better."

Full article (http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/zimbabwe/content/story/251188.html)

cricbb

July 3, 2006, 07:49 AM

Al shahriar Rokon was performed in the domestic league so how come he's not in the National or 'A' team fold. Surely he deserves another chance to prove himself